Ethical shoppers aren't saving the planet, they're boosting profits Jun 7, 2007
This week Catherine went to see the Tate Modern's merry-go-round, and then a series of excellent children's events at the Hay Festival: "Which was not as character-building for these mollycoddled youngsters as avoiding exposure and molestation in the countryside (as recommended by traditionalists), but, then again, a lot more interesting.". . (Guardian Unlimited)
1984 'is definitive book of 20th century' Jun 3, 2007
Paranoia, propaganda and a state of perpetual war are the defining characteristics of the last century, according to the results of a national survey announced at the Hay festival today. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell's dystopic vision of a totalitarian future in which the population is constantly monitored and manipulated, came top of the survey to find the book that best defines the 20th century. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Be A Virtual Newsreader On Sky Jun 2, 2007
The island was launched with a special "simulcast" of Adam Boulton's Sunday Live show from the Hay festival. Hundreds of "avatars" tried to get into the event but because of space restrictions not everyone could. (Sky News)
Iraq war can't be won: former British army commander Jun 2, 2007
General Rose was speaking at the annual Hay Festival of Literature and the Arts in Hay-on-Wye, on the Welsh border with England. "Those who don't read history are condemned to repeat the mistakes of the past," he said. (ABC News Online, Australia -- World)
Global overview: Equities soar on US growth hopes Jun 2, 2007
Arts podcast: Whos who at the Hay Festival; Death in Venice; and reflections on Cannes. Fourth column content. (FT.com -- Markets)
The reality series we can't turn off Jun 2, 2007
Yet even next to these examples of Blairite envelope-pushing, Lord Butler's revelation to the Hay festival this week seems jaw-dropping. We have known for years that the PM has drastically downgraded the importance of the cabinet. (Guardian Unlimited)
Viewpoint: Sir David Attenborough Jun 2, 2007
Sir David was speaking in advance of his Joseph Rotblat memorial lecture at the Guardian Hay festival today. Prof Rotblat was a nuclear physicist who received the Nobel peace prize for his campaign against nuclear weapons. (Guardian Unlimited)
Puttnam: Channel 4 remit 'isn't fit for purpose' Jun 2, 2007
Speaking to The Guardian at the Hay Festival, he said that Channel 4 needed a tighter remit to make sure its programme makers were responsible as well as challenging and controversial, adding that a review would help rebuild the broadcaster's reputation. Lord Puttnam said of the channel's remit, which was written in the early 1980s: "It clearly isn't fit for purpose in today's multichannel world.". (Digital Spy)
Morpurgo: next children's laureate should be poet Jun 2, 2007
Interviewed at the Hay festival for the , the author refused to let slip the name of the new laureate - who will be announced on June 11 - but did reveal that he "hoped" it would be a poet in order to keep the position as broad as possible. He pointed out that the four laureates so far have been an illustrator (Quentin Blake) and three writers (Anne Fine, Morpurgo and the current holder, Jacqueline Wilson) and that it was important that the laureateship did not just become an award for... (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Bad Man wins children's award Jun 2, 2007
Speaking after the awards ceremony at the Hay festival, which was a lively affair attended by children who had voted for the winner along with some of the leading lights of the children's book scene, Stanton said that he was startled to have won. "It feels a bit like I shouldn't really be here," he confessed. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
'I've always been a nosy git' Jun 1, 2007
The Lie of the Land, which was also screened at this year's Hay festival, was really born out of The Lord's Tale. "I was there filming when the fox hunting bill came lumbering through after the Commons and all that," she explains, "and I just thought, why?". (Guardian Unlimited)
Why I believe IVF actually CAUSES childlessness Jun 1, 2007
So when he stood up at the Hay Festival earlier this week and condemned the IVF industry as corrupt and greedy, he did it with flair and gravitas. This is the man who set up the world-famous IVF unit at Hammersmith Hospital, who is emeritus professor of fertility studies at Imperial College. (Daily Mail)
'If I'm at my desk, I'm happy' Jun 1, 2007
He likes to walk, and seems a little disappointed that the constraints of time demand that we are taking a car from the Hay festival site into town instead of strolling through the late afternoon sunshine. Pamuk is fresh from serving on the jury at the Cannes film festival, an experience which he sums up as "glamorous". (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Children's laureate publishes anti-Blair allegory Jun 1, 2007
Michelle PauliThursday May 31, 2007. I wanted my readers to understand how important politics are. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Winston: IVF clinics corrupt and greedy Jun 1, 2007
Speaking at the Guardian Hay festival, Robert Winston also accused the fertility watchdog, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, of failing to protect women and giving consistently poor information to couples. "One of the major problems facing us in healthcare is that IVF has become a massive commercial industry," he said. (Guardian Unlimited -- Life)
Better late than never May 31, 2007
Marina Lewycka's first book was rejected 36 times before she finally found a publisher at the age of 58. Now A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian is a worldwide hit. (Guardian Unlimited)
Westwood line on art suffers in translation May 30, 2007
Designer Vivienne Westwood has unveiled her cultural manifesto at the Guardian Hay festival, in the form of a dialogue between such characters as Diogenes the Cynic, Alice, Pinocchio, the Mad Hatter and Aristotle. Mounting an assault on the theory that art is subjective, and in particular on the conceptual visual art produced in the wake of artists such as Marcel Duchamp, Westwood said yesterday: "In visual art, I don't believe that anything is happening at the moment.". (Guardian Unlimited)
Tony Blair and the case of the disappearing cabinet May 30, 2007
"In the eight months I was cabinet secretary when Tony Blair was prime minister, the only decision the cabinet took was about the Millennium Dome," he told a discussion at the Guardian Hay Festival. "And the only way they could get that decision was Tony Blair left the room to go to a memorial service and John Prescott was left chairing the meeting. There were in fact more people against than for it and the one thing that John Prescott could get cabinet agreement to was that they should leave it... (Guardian Unlimited -- UK)
Nobel laureate develops a new image May 30, 2007
Speaking exclusively to the Guardian at the Hay festival yesterday, the Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk revealed that his next project is to be a "novel with pictures". The Nobel laureate, whose previous acclaimed works include My Name is Red and Snow, had wanted to become a painter before he began writing novels, and said that in recent years he has been regressing into his childhood "more and more". (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Gordon Brown heads for Hogwarts May 30, 2007
Speaking from the Hay festival - where he was promoting his book, Courage - Brown added that Al Gore's The Assault on Reason and Thomas Keneally's The Widow and Her Hero would also go into his suitcase. At three, and approaching a year old, both of his children are still too young for the Potter experience. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
The burning question May 30, 2007
Robin Hardy is best known for directing cult paganism thriller The Wicker Man. In fact, he's only known for directing The Wicker Man. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Scientists divided over alliance with religion May 30, 2007
Speaking at a debate at the Guardian Hay festival, Martin Rees, the Astronomer Royal who heads the Royal Society, said that science needed as many allies as it could find in the current climate. "If we give the impression that science is hostile to even mainstream religion, it will be more difficult to combat the kinds of anti-science sentiments that are really important," he said. (Guardian Unlimited -- Life)
'Opera Idol' will be tale of homicide May 29, 2007
Rankin's 'Opera Idol' will be tale of grisly homicide. Arts correspondent Charlotte HigginsMonday May 28, 2007. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Brown promises to reverse vote May 28, 2007
Hay festival Bill will be 'corrected' to reverse Commons vote, says PM in waiting ... The chancellor was speaking to a packed audience at the Guardian Hay festival, where tickets were gold dust for the chance to hear him talk about his book, Courage - and perhaps, more importantly, to size up the future prime minister for the last time in a relatively relaxed and intimate setting. (Guardian Unlimited -- Politics)
Environmental lobbyist demands government action May 28, 2007
In a debate at the Guardian Hay festival, Jeremy Leggett, a former Greenpeace campaigner and now chief executive of the environmental group Solar Century, will argue that last week's energy white paper does not go far enough to tackle climate change because the government has failed to stand up to conservative institutions in Britain. Speaking before today's debate, called Greening Britain, Dr Leggett said he would expose the gap between what the government says and the policies it is actually... (Guardian Unlimited -- UK)
Monbiot attacks Welsh energy plan May 28, 2007
But at the Hay Festival he urged an end to windfarms on land and said a Severn Barrage would cause too much damage. The Welsh Assembly Government said the challenge was to cut emissions "without compromising energy requirements and economic needs". (BBC News -- UK)
The voice of conscience May 28, 2007
Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka at the Hay festival ... We meet in a London pub on his way to give a lecture at the Guardian Hay festival at the weekend; and his subject is international culpability over what's happening in Darfur. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Lottery cash being misused, says Major May 27, 2007
At the Guardian Hay Festival, where he was promoting his new book about cricket, More than a Game, the former Prime Minister said he had created the lottery with the idea of bringing 'life-enhancing' activities to a wider group of the public, but under New Labour he had seen funds diverted to causes that were once funded by taxation. He said he was now lobbying hard for the situation to be reversed under a new government. (Guardian Unlimited -- UK)
Austen film to open with seduction May 27, 2007
Sense and Sensibility will undergo a sex and violence makeover, writer tells Hay Festival ... I think I might have just written another wet shirt scene,' Davies admitted at the Guardian Hay Festival yesterday. (Guardian Unlimited -- UK)
Brown admits Iraq 'divided nation' May 27, 2007
Speaking at the Hay Festival in Mid Wales, where he was promoting a new book on his political heroes, Mr Brown admitted: "It's clearly divided the country.". He urged people to "be fair" to Tony Blair over his 10-year premiership and spoke of the Prime Minister's "enduring achievement". (Ananova -- Headlines)
Deputy hopefuls battle for votes May 27, 2007
Speaking later at the Hay Festival, in mid Wales, he said he took "collective responsibility" for the decision to go to war with Iraq and reiterated that it had "clearly divided the country.". Saturday's hustings with trade unionists also saw debate about proposals by Mr Johnson, the education secretary, for private schools to lend teachers to state schools and share other facilities. (BBC News -- UK)
'Every child matters' says Brown May 27, 2007
An overflow area at the Hay festival, with Gordon Brown's event a sell-out ... Speaking at the Hay festival in Powys, Mr Brown said the experience "made me believe that every child matters, they deserve our best endeavours". (BBC News -- UK)
Hay snorkles for top words May 27, 2007
Snorkle, freedom, midwifery and interglobular are just some of the suggestions authors and visitors to the Hay festival have come up with at the launch of a nationwide search for our favourite word. Education Action, one of the festival's official charities, is using the 'Words for the World' campaign to draw attention to their support for education for children in conflict zones. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Interview: John Major May 26, 2007
John Major appears today at the Guardian Hay festival. More Than a Game, by John Major, is published by Harper Press at 25. (Guardian Unlimited)
The book I bought May 26, 2007
Every day at the festival, we'll be giving a passing punter 5 - yes, 5. - to spend in one of Hay's plethora of bookshops, on the condition that they come back and show us what they bought. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Hay Festival May 25, 2007
Just over four years ago, Iain Banks did something strange. He ripped up his passport in protest at the Iraq war and sent it to Tony Blair. (Guardian Unlimited)
Skys HD Service Gets Bigger & Better May 24, 2007
International Television said "We are thrilled to support Sky in their efforts to be at the forefront of the HD experience for consumers by offering our Warner Bros. films in this format for the Sky HD service." Over the next couple of months Sky HD viewers will be able to choose from a huge range of HD-entertainment across Sky's HD channels, covering everything from United 93 and X-Men: The Last Stand on Sky Movies HD; to 24 and Lost on Sky One HD; The UEFA Champions League Final, Majors... (HEXUS.Lifestyle)
Hay Fringe goes to Timbuktu May 24, 2007
The twinning of Hay-on-Wye with Timbuktu earlier this year may have escaped your notice but Hay festivalgoers who break loose from the tented village for the town won't be able to miss it ... It's been three years since Prince, who worked in the Hay festival box office for four years, felt that there was a need for the town to become more involved in the literary festival - especially with the main site moving further away from the town centre - and set up the fringe programme. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
No more private jets for me, DiCaprio tells Cannes May 21, 2007
Gore, who went on the road extensively in 2006 to promote his film, including a trip to the Guardian Hay festival and Edinburgh film festival, has come under fire for his extensive air travel. There were also claims last year that the energy consumption of his own home in a month was more than twice that of an average US family in a year. (Guardian Unlimited -- Film)
News on the virtual second May 21, 2007
Sky will launch its first simulcast in Second Life on May 27 with Sky News' Sunday Live with Adam Boulton from the Guardian Hay Festival (Sky is a corporate sponsor of the festival). Boulton and his guests on the programme, including Clive James, Mariella Frostrup and author Tim Guest, will all have virtual Second Life avatars and questions will be taken from the virtual audience gathered in Second Life. (Guardian Unlimited)
"Woodstock Of The Mind" May 11, 2007
" So I appreciated the hotel by walking among its garden of orange and red poppies, purple lilies and yellow roses. After three days in Hay, I crammed almost a dozen books into my backpack and headed toward the bus station. On the bus out of town I met 89-year-old Cynthia Coatts, who'd just enjoyed her first Hay festival. The eight-hour journey from her home in southeastern England was "absolutely worth it," she said. "I bought so many books, for myself and my great-grandchildren, that I had to... (San Francisco Chronicle -- Travel)
Five best ... outdoor film shows May 5, 2007
see Shakespeare-inspired films at the RSC's Open Air Film Season. A Bollywood take on Othello and a Japanese Samurai film based on Macbeth are among the Shakespeare-inspired films at the RSC's Open Air Film Season on the banks of the Avon. (Guardian Unlimited -- Travel)
A real pig's cheer May 3, 2007
He will be presented with champagne and 52 volumes of the Everyman Wodehouse edition at the Guardian Hay Festival on May 28. One of the region's famous Gloucester Old Spot pigs will also be named after the winning novel. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Five best ... food festivals Apr 29, 2007
Peter Florence, Hay Festival Director. April 22 2007. (Guardian Unlimited -- Travel)
Reporting on a conflict: Fearless in Gaza Apr 15, 2007
So surely Campbell would at least have a tentative booking for this year's Hay Festival to rub shoulders with Richard Perle and Martin Amis. Er, no, he need not set aside a space in his diary for the greatly respected literary circus. (Independent)
That'll be finca Apr 4, 2007
Book buffs can get another fix before the year is out at a new lit fest which is organised by the Hay Festival but held on the island of Majorca. . (Guardian Unlimited -- Travel)
In brief: Blanchett among Hay headliners Apr 4, 2007
Cate Blanchett will give an exclusive talk at the Guardian Hay Festival this May, as part of the star-studded 20th-birthday schedule in which celebrities almost outnumber authors. Blanchett is scheduled to speak with Jeremy Leggett, chairman of the charity Solaraid, of which she is patron, highlighting the charity's efforts to give access to cheap, renewable power in Africa. (Guardian Unlimited -- Film)
Hay-on-Wye toasts its twinning with Timbuktu Feb 7, 2007
Peter Florence, director of the Hay Festival, is already considering a Hay-in-the-desert offshoot. Full coverage. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Village goes carbon-neutral Jan 26, 2007
"But when the whole community has a go, it becomes a team effort. The point is that this has to be fun." Mr Charnock was inspired by a Greenpeace debate at the Hay festival. The project's working group of 28 includes Dr Roy Alexander, village resident and reader in geography and development studies at the University of Chester. (Guardian Unlimited -- UK)
New hotel rating system goes public Jan 11, 2007
New UK hotel rating system goes public. Thursday January 11 2007. (Guardian Unlimited -- Travel)
Who's who, from iPod creator to Noel Edmonds Jan 4, 2007
Arnold, David George, film composer, songwriter and record producer; Banville, John, writer; Florence, Peter Kenrick, founder and director, the Guardian Hay Festival; Gray, Muriel Janet, presenter and broadcaster; Henderson, Fergus, MBE, chef and owner, St John Restaurant, London; Hill, Adrian Vivian Sinton, director the Jenner Institute and professor of human genetics, University of Oxford; Ive, Jonathan Paul, CBE, RDI, senior vice-president and head of design Apple; Martin, Claire, jazz... (Guardian Unlimited)
